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Tic Tac Dough (1979 Transmanian game show)
Tic Tac Dough is a Transmanian television game show based on the paper-and-pencil game of tic-tac-toe. Contestants answer questions in various categories to put up their respective symbol, X'' or ''O, on the board. It was premiered on ATN in September 3, 1979 and ended on May 20, 1983 and and was hosted by Nicholas Segers in the ATN version who later hosted Press Your Luck in 1984 and Olivia Aurora-Webber served as a primary announcer. Tic Tac Dough was revived on TBN from September 19, 1983 and ended on July 21, 1995 and was hosted by TBN Radio 2 personality Andrew Cunningham and Olivia Aurora-Webber also served as the announcer until 1995. It was based on the U.S. version of the same name. Gameplay The goal of the game was to complete a line of three X or O markers on a standard tic-tac-toe board (with the reigning champion always mounting X's). Each of the nine spaces on the gameboard featured a category. Contestants alternated choosing a category and answering a general interest or trivia question in that category. If they were correct, they earned an X or O in that square; otherwise, it remained unclaimed. The center square, being of the most strategic importance, involved a two-part question, with the contestant given ten seconds to think of the two answers needed to win the square. After each question, the categories shuffled into different positions. The categories shuffled only after both contestants had taken a turn. If at any point in a game it became impossible for either contestant to win with a line (a so-called "cat game"), the match was declared a draw and a new game started. The process continued until the deadlock was broken, however long it took to do so. This meant that a match could take multiple episodes to complete, which happened quite often. Tic-Tac-Dough used a rollover format to enable this to take place smoothly. This meant that a match could start at any point in an episode, continue until time was called, and then resume play on the next episode where the game began with the same categories in play. The gameboard was made up of nine Apple II monitors linked to a central Altair 8800 computer, which displayed the categories, X's and O's. It was the first game show to use computerized graphics. On the ATN series, contestants played until either being defeated or reaching the network's Rp25,000 total winnings limit. Additionally, on the TBN 1983-95 version, each time a contestant defeated five opponents, he or she also won a new car. Adding money to the pot As questions were answered correctly, money was added to the pot which went to the winner: On the original series, the same nine categories were used for an entire episode regardless of the number of games played. On all subsequent series, each new game featured a different set of nine categories. If there were ties on the original or first syndicated series, the pot was carried over to each subsequent game until someone won. In the TBN series, there was no carryover of the pot from a tied game. Instead, the values of the outer boxes increased by Rp500 (Rp1,000) and the center box by Rp1,000 (Rp15,000) until the tie was broken. For each tie game before being defeated, losing challengers received Rp1,000 on the ATN version and Rp1,500 in the TBN version. Champions who eventually lost the match after a tie game did not receive any additional money. Special categories The use of special categories, which appeared in red boxes, began on ATN in 1980. At first, just one special category (starting in the lower right box, later in the lower center box) was used per game. Eventually, two appeared each game (one in the upper center, the other in the lower center at the start), then three of these appeared per game (in the upper center, center right and lower center boxes to start the game). The categories then shuffled like normal categories, though special categories never shuffled into the center box. * Auction: Contestants were read a question with multiple answers. Contestants took turns bidding on how many correct answers they could name until either a contestant deferred to his opponent or opted to name all the answers on the list. If the winning bidder fulfilled the bid, that contestant won the box. If not, the other contestant only needed to give one additional correct answer to win the box. * Bonus Category: A three-part question was asked, which, if answered correctly, gave the contestant another turn. The categories were shuffled before the extra turn; as a result, it was possible for the champion to win the game on his/her first turn by repeatedly selecting this category. If this happened, the challenger was invited back to compete on a future episode. * Challenge Category: The contestant who selected this category could answer the question or challenge their opponent to answer. If the opponent challenged gives a wrong answer, the contestant who selected the category won the box, and vice versa. * Double or Nothing: If the contestant answered the question correctly, they could either keep the box or try to earn a second box. If unsuccessful, the contestant lost both boxes. Later, contestants were required to take the risk. When this category was selected, the board did not shuffle after the first question was answered correctly. * Grand Question: This category replaced Secret Category (see below). A correct answer added Rp1,000 to the pot. * It's a Dilemma: The contestant heard the question and could ask for up to five clues; however, the opponent decided who answered the question. * Jump-In Category: Contestants used the buzzers in front of them to ring-in and answer the question. A correct answer won the box, but an incorrect answer gave the other contestant a chance to win the box by hearing the entire question. * Number Please: The contestants were asked a question with a numerical answer. The contestant who picked the category guessed the answer and the opponent guessed if the correct answer was higher or lower. If the opponent was correct, they won the box, otherwise the first contestant won. An exact guess of the number won the box automatically for the first contestant. * Opponent's Choice: The contestant answered a question from one of two categories which were selected for them by the opponent. During the TBN season, one category contained one question while the other category contained two. * Play or Pass: The contestant had the option to skip the first question and answer a second. *'Secret Category: This was the show's very first red category, which first appeared in the lower right hand corner at the start, then later appeared in the bottom center at the start. The topic of the Secret Category was only announced by the host after it was selected. A correct answer to that category doubled the value of the pot. * Seesaw: A question with multiple answers was read to both contestants. Contestants alternated giving correct answers until one contestant gave a wrong answer, repeated an answer, or could not think of an answer and the opponent won the box, unless the opponent could not answer either, which left the box unclaimed. The box could also be won by giving the last correct answer. * Showdown: Contestants were asked a two-part question, using the buzzers to ring-in. The first contestant to ring-in answered one part of the question. The other contestant answered second. If one contestant was right while the other was wrong, the contestant answering correctly won the box. Otherwise, additional questions were asked until the box was awarded in this manner. * Take Two: The question had two clues. The contestant could answer after the first clue, but to receive the second clue he or she had to first give the opponent a chance to answer. * Three to Win: A series of buzz-in questions was asked to both contestants, with the first to answer three correctly winning the box. * Top Ten: A question with ranked answers was asked. The contestant who chose the higher-ranked answer won the box; however, if the first contestant gave the top-ranked answer, he/she automatically won the box. * Trivia Challenge: A question with three multiple-choice answers was asked. The contestant chose to answer first or defer to their opponent. Regardless of who started, if a contestant was incorrect, his/her opponent could choose from the remaining answers. If the opponent also guessed wrong, the box remained unclaimed. Bonus round The bonus round was introduced giving the winner of a match a chance to "Beat the Dragon". ATN (early Season 1 only, 1979) On the first season of the show, the bonus round had four Xs, four Os and one dragon hidden inside the nine monitors. The Xs and Os were shuffled around so that one of the symbols formed a "Tic-Tac-Dough". For each X and O a contestant revealed, Rp200 was added to the pot. The contestant won the money and a prize package for finding the "Tic-Tac-Dough" line, but could quit and take the cash at any time. Finding the dragon ended the round and lost all the money in the pot. If the dragon was found, the same prize package was at stake for the entire episode until won. ATN (late Season 1 (1979-1980), Seasons 2-4, 1980-1983), TBN (Seasons 5-14 1983-1992) On J, the squares contained the words "TIC" and "TAC", and six currency amounts: Rp100, Rp150, Rp250, Rp300, Rp400, Rp500 (originally in 1980, Rp50, Rp150, Rp250, Rp350, Rp400, and Rp500). The remaining box concealed the dragon. The object was for the contestant to accumulate Rp1,000 or more. If successful, the contestant won the cash and a prize package that usually consisted of furniture, trips, jewelry, and/or appliances, totaling anywhere between Rp2,000 and Rp4,000. For the first five seasons, the same prize package was at stake for the entire show until won, but this was changed to a different prize package for each bonus round for the final three seasons. The contestant automatically won by uncovering "TIC" and "TAC" (at which point the contestant also had his/her cash total amended to Rp1,000). However, if the contestant found the dragon, the game ended and the contestant forfeited the prize package and the accumulated money. The contestant could stop at any time, take the money and forgo the prize package. For a brief period from 1981-83, a contestant had to accumulate exactly Rp1,000 or find TIC and TAC, but this was quickly removed. TBN (1992-1995) From 1992-1995,the show used a bonus round that the same as the 1990 US Syndicated version was similar to the 1979 ATN bonus round, with the champion playing for cash and a merchandise prize. There were, however, several notable differences. One was that the contestant chose between X and O as their symbol for the round and hoped to complete a "Tic-Tac-Dough" line with that symbol. In addition, an armored knight dubbed the "dragon slayer" was added to the board and finding him resulted in an automatic win. It was not always possible to complete a Tic-Tac-Dough with a contestant's chosen symbol due to both shuffling and distribution of the symbols. For example, the shuffling, which was stopped manually by the contestant, could leave contestants with no Tic-Tac-Dough possibility for their chosen symbol; sometimes a contestant might not have enough symbols on the board to complete one or the shuffle placed their symbols on the board in such a manner that they could not form any connection no matter what symbol was chosen. In these cases, the contestant could only win the prize by finding the dragon slayer. For the first of their symbols a contestant found, they received Rp1,000. Each one found after that doubled the pot. If the contestant completed the Tic-Tac-Dough, he/she won the prize and whatever money was in the pot. Finding the dragon slayer doubled the pot, and if he was found without money in the pot, the contestant won Rp1,500. As before, finding the dragon at any point ended the round and cost the contestant everything. Record winnings Broadcast history Season overview Original and Revival series International versions References External links Category:Game shows Category:1979 Transmanian television series debuts Category:1983 Transmanian television series endings Category:Television series revieved after cancellation Category:1983 Transmanian television series debuts Category:1995 Transmanian television series endings Category:1970s Transmanian television series Category:1980s Transmanian television series